One for the (Blood) Money
by ThePartyParrot
Summary: Stephanie Plum is broke and desperate, so she blackmails her cousin into letting her be a bounty hunter. But a massive news story changes everything, and a world she never knew existed comes crashing into her life. Luckily she has Ranger to help her along the way.
1. Chapter 1 A New Job

"_THERE ARE SOME MEN who enter a woman's life and screw it up forever. Joseph Morelli did this to me—not forever, but periodically."_

Stephanie

I was broke, my car had been repossessed, and I was desperate. So I blackmailed my cousin Vinnie into letting me do skip tracing. He agreed, figuring I would get tired of it and quit by dinner. I was determined to prove him wrong, and so far had lasted until 8 in the evening.

Now that I was standing outside the apartment I was sure Morelli was hiding in, I wasn't so sure quitting was _that_ bad an idea. There had to be other ways to make $10,000. I've heard the market for kidneys is really good, and really, who needs more than one kidney? My stomach was tied up in knots, but I put on a cute-and-non threatening facial expression and knocked on the door.

I don't know why he would answer it. I mean, why would he? What kind of idiot fugitive answers the door to someone he doesn't know?

Apparenty the kind who's a cop wanted for murder. The door cracked open, and I saw the face I remembered from childhood. He looked harder, more chiseled, and somewhat sickly. I guess being on the run messes with your sleep schedule.

I took a moment to steady my voice, to formulate the lie. "I'm looking for Joe Juniak . . ."

"You got the wrong apartment. There's no Juniak here."

And I lost my nerve. "Sorry" I said as I stumbled away, really not sure under any scenario I could have gotten him to come back to jail with me.

But as I turned to go down the stairs he was in front of me. I hadn't even seen him move.

"Stephanie? Stephanie Plum?"

"Um, Joe Morelli?"

His eyes narrowed. "You ran me over with a Buick."

"You wrote on the men's room that I was like a cupcake, soft and sweet and good to eat."

He laughed. "That's true, I did." Then he looked at me, not like a fugitive, but like a panther eyeing his prey. "I like the hair. Wild, untamed. Sexy"

I froze. I briefly considered trying to seduce him into my car, but decided that was an insane idea.

He glanced at his watch. "I'd love to continue this conversation, but I have places to be. But I'll look you up when I'm finished with this."

And he was gone, down the stairs and out the door.

In frustration I called Connie, embarrassed that I had found him, but he'd gotten away. "I need to talk to someone, an expert, someone to give me advice."

"I know just the guy. Ranger. Ex-special forces, now he does fugitive apprehension. He owes me a favor, I'll give him a call."

And that's how I ended up at an all-night diner sitting across from the hottest guy I'd ever seen. He had smooth brown skin, long black hair in a ponytail, and a dangerous look in his eye. "So, Connie tells me you want to be a Bounty Hunter. Why's that?"

Ranger

I'd thought Connie was kidding when she said she had a new BEA. This chick from the Burg wanted to take down criminals skipping bond? Still, I did owe Connie a favor for telling me when I could come in right before Vinnie was leaving so I didn't have to talk to him for more than a few minutes. So what the hell, I figured I could play Henry Higgans for a newbie.

She wasn't what I expected. Way too perky. Couldn't intimidate a rabbit with a panic disorder. Still, she was pretty hot, so I figured I'd give it a go. I always liked teaching, and she was a damn sight better to look at then Army recruits.

"You see the car parked under the streetlight? It's mine." she said defiantly.

"OK. You need money. I get that. But why this? Do you have any military experience? Law enforcement? Judo?"

She shook her head. "I'm clever, I'm a good liar, and I'm tenacious. And I want to get him."

"Who's him?"

"Joe Morelli. My first...case."

"Personal reasons? So what did this guy do to you? Because he's not stupid, and he's not careless. Probably better to stick to DUIs and Public Indecency."

"I want this guy."

Mentally I shrugged. "What do you know about guns?"

"Not a lot, aside from that I don't like them."

Dammit.

"You're going to need one anyway. Plus cuffs and a stun gun. Pepper Spray too, just to be safe. Can you afford that?"

"I have a bit of money stashed away."

I could tell by the look on her face that it wasn't much. I was feeling charitable, maybe I'd subsidize the purchases. If she chickened out, I'd take them back, you can never have too many guns or cuffs.

"Meet me as Sid's gun store tomorrow at 9AM. We'll train then."

I drove back to the basement apartment I shared with my cousin Lester. I couldn't get Stephanie Plum out of my head. There was just something about her, scared but fiery, and such a babe.

Lester was camped out in front of the TV, unusual for him. He normally went to bed after the news unless he was on watch. "Cuz, you aren't going to believe this shit." He flipped off the screen.

"What happened?" If this was another thing about the damn Kardashians, I was going to dope-slap him.

"Well, first, they've perfected synthetic blood. Works for transfusions, even got down the packaging so you can transport it without refrigeration."

Damn. That would save a LOT of soldier's lives. Plenty of times on a battlefield someone has bled out before a medic could get them to a hospital. "That's great news. We should get some to keep at Rangeman when it opens up."

"Dude, that's isn't the half of it. It gets WAY bigger than that."

I grabbed a beer from the fridge. "So spill, what's the big news that eclipses saving soldier's lives?"

"Shit, you wouldn't believe me if I told you." He grabbed the remote and turned the TV back on. It was tuned to CNN, and Wolf Blitzer was on the screen.

"For those of you who have just joined us, we have breaking news. Earlier this evening we received verified reports that vampires are real, and have been living among us. The introduction of synthetic blood has allowed them to feed without killing, and so they have 'Come out of the coffin', so to speak, announcing their presence to the world. Here is the footage broadcast in the United States."

Wolf was replaced with a white-haired middle-aged man that looked like a bank president. He explained that vampires wanted nothing more than to live in peace with humans. Yeah right. I'm sure they were all cuddly puppy dogs who were just misunderstood.

"So you think a vamp is as good in the sack as all the stories say?" Lester asked, proving once again that his mind truly did have only one track.

"I'm sure you'll let me know any minute. I'm going to bed."

I walked to my bedroom and changed, sliding under the crappy sheets. We'd only be in this place for a few more months, until the Rangeman building was complete. It occurred to me suddenly that if I ever brought a woman back here, she'd probably hate it. A twin bed with sheets from an army surplus store. Dollar store toiletries. The room wasn't much bigger than a handicap bathroom stall. When I moved, I should upgrade.

As I fell asleep, I wondered that made me think of that.


	2. Chapter 2 First Capture

_Recap: Stephanie gets a job as a bounty hunter and meets Ranger, who is willing to teach her. Her first target is a guy she's known since he was in high school, Joe Morelli. At the end of the day, news comes out that due to the invention of artificial blood, Vampires are making their existence public. Ranger falls asleep thinking that when he moves to Rangeman, he needs a place a woman might enjoy more._

Stephanie

I woke up at 8, did the shower thing, teased my hair in true Jersey-girl style, and applied mascara. As I'd sold my stereo a month ago to pay my phone bill, I sang to myself in the shower. I was feeling pretty good about my version of 'Proud Mary', belting it out with the volume of a woman who knows all her neighbors are Senior Citizens who couldn't hear a jackhammer if it were in the next room.

I checked my phone right before putting it in my purse, only to see there was a text message.

_Got held up. Have to reschedule our gun training for 7 pm. Will that work? -R_

Shit. I'd been counting on learning more tricks of the trade. But there is a limit to how picky you can be with free help.

_Sure, see you then. -S_

Now I wasn't sure what to do. I didn't want to try catching Morelli again until I had a better idea of what to do if I found him. I decided to go talk to Connie. Maybe she could help.

I walked into Vincent Plum Bail Bonds, trying hard to look confident. "So, Ranger is taking me shooting tonight."

"That's great! But try not to shoot Morelli. There's a lot of paperwork if you shoot a skip."

"Um, I wasn't planning on it." I stammered. "I don't want to try catching him again until I have a better idea of what I'm doing. Anything you have for me in the meantime?"

"Sure," Connie said, picking up a couple of folders from her desk. "Usually there's a couple small bonds a day that need tracking down. It's just petty cash, 50 bucks here, a hundred there, but if you bring them all in and supplement with an occasional big bond, you can do OK for yourself. Here, this will be an easy one."

I looked at the first folder. Walter 'Moonman' Dunphy. "I know this guy, we went to high school together. Massive stoner."

Connie nodded. "Hasn't changed at all. Still a stoner, and about as mature as a 10th grader. But he never resists arrest, unless you count offering to watch TV and eat snacks with him resisting. He just genuinely forgets. Star Trek is on at 11 AM, so he'll be home for that."

* * *

At 11:10 I knocked on the door to the address the file gave me. After a moment (and the sounds of a lot of shuffling) the door flung open, nearly knocking me down with a cloud of smoke. Moonman was standing there in his pajamas,

"Dudette! Are you selling Girl Scout cookies? I could _totally_ take some Thin Mints right now."

"Umm, no. Sorry. I'm Stephanie Plum, I work for.."

"Stephanie? Woah, no way! How you doing?"

"Hey, Star Trek's on. Want to some watch some Klingons?"

"I'd love to but.."

"Great! I have pizza from last night. Deep Dish."

OK, here's the deal. I hadn't eaten anything in a couple weeks but my mom's dinners and leftovers. I suspected I'd lost several pounds, but I'd hawked my scale. Connie said he wasn't dangerous, and I remember him as being extremely relaxed in High School. There didn't seem to be any harm in just sitting down and eating a bit.

"Wait," I said. "I thought Klingons had those bumpy forheads."

"Nah, Duddette, not at this time. They were performing a genetic experiment with human DNA to create super soldiers."

"They what?" I didn't super care, I was just happy that for once in my life I was relaxed. My belly was full of pizza, chips, dip, and brownies.

Mooner launched into an explanation that I completely didn't follow. But it was relaxing listening to him. Really relaxing. I hadn't felt this good in months. When Start Trek was over, we started watching the 12 o'clock news. He pulled out a bong and took a hit, then offered it to me.

"Sorry Mooner, I don't smoke."

"Just the edibles then? Rightious. Smoke is bad for you."

"No, I don't eat pot either. No drugs at all."

"Um, Dudette, you had 3 brownies."

"Yeah, so? I was hungry." Then it hit me.

"Oh, Mooner, those weren't pot brownies, were they?"

"Is there any other kind?"

Fuck. Fuck. "OK. I don't feel too bad. Just melow. So maybe they didn't hit me too hard."

"Nah, they just take a while to kick in. About 45 minutes."

I looked at the clock. 45 minutes would be just about now. Shit. Then I started at the television. The headline said Vampires Among Us!

"Mooner," I said hesitantly, "I think I'm hallucinating. The news is talking about vampires."

"Oh yeah, you didn't hear? It came out last night. Vampires are, like, totally real. But there's fake blood they can buy so they don't have to eat us. It's awesome."

Well fuck.

* * *

Ranger

I waited in the dark outside outside Sid's gun store looking for my new protege, Stephanie Plum. I was strangely anxious. Normally I'm cool, inside and out. Nothing gets to me. But I hadn't been able to stop thinking about her since we parted last night. That was odd for me. Ever since my quickie marriage and divorce, I'd avoided seeing a woman for more than a night. Sometimes I'd go to a bar, meet someone, and have a one night stand. Always at her place, and I'd be gone before the sun even rose. It took care of my needs. But I just couldn't get that crazy brunette out of my mind.

I could hear her car before I saw it. The muffler was shot. As it pulled around the corner, I could see her, yelling at the dashboard and thunking it with her fist. I smiled internally. I always smile internally. I learned long ago not to let my feelings show. It's a lot safer that way.

She parked in the beam of a streetlight, my smile widened when she opened the door and got out, stumbling a little. I went up to her, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin.

"Ranger! I didn't see you there."

"Got to be aware of your surroundings, Babe. And why do you smell like a Phish concert?"

"Oh! I did my first capture!" She held up her check proudly. "It was a guy I knew from High School. Total stoner. He invited me in to watch Star Trek, and I hadn't eaten anything today. So I came in and ate some pizza and brownies."

I looked at her eyes, red even in the amber glow of the streetlight. "You ate brownies at the house of a guy you were trying to capture?" That was both amusing and appalling. And then I realized the other thing she had said. That she hadn't eaten today. Might be forgetfulness or rushing out the door. But combined with her desperation for money, it probably meant she didn't have any food in the house.

She nodded. "So then I had to wait there while I came down from the high. But he let me take him in, and I got my first recovery check! It's only $50, but that's money I didn't have this morning. Should I sign it over to you for cuffs and a gun and stuff?"

Not if it meant she didn't have money for groceries. Despite the fact that it would be unsafe to us to go shooting while she still had cannabis in her system, I wanted to spend time with her. "Maybe later. Do you have any other FTAs?"

She glared at me. "Did you just call me fat?"

Internally I groaned. Lucky for her I liked brunettes. What had I gotten myself into? "FTA. Failure to appear. Did Connie give you any more files?"

She looked embarrassed. "Oh, right. Yeah. I've got another one in the car."

"Let me see it. We can't go shooting, not while you're high. But you can follow me and see how it's done."


	3. Chapter 3 Learning the Ropes

_Recap: Stephanie tries to do her first capture, but eats some of Mooner's brownies, leading her to be high as a kite when she meets Ranger to go shooting. Ranger decides instead to go do a capture._

Stephanie

My first file was Clarence Sampson. He had a record that was long and unvaried. Public Drunkenness, DUI, and open container violations going back decades. Never violent, unless you count the DUIs. Ranger flipped through it. "Shouldn't be a problem. We'll try his place first."

"Got it." I said, trying to sound confident. I got into my car, turned the key, and groaned as it let off a horrendous shriek. It reminded me of a sound effect for a horror film taking place in a wood chipper factory. I pounded my head against the steering wheel. This was so embarrassing. A few seconds later I heard a tapping on my window. Ranger stood outside, beckoning me. I considered just staying where I was and hoping the earth would split open and swallow me. But Ranger didn't move. After a couple of breaths I turned and got out. Just my luck living in a geologically stable place where the earth very rarely swallowed people up and made them disappear. The mob, yes. But not the earth.

"We can take my truck." he said, tilting his head towards the alley. It didn't look like the safest alley, it looked like the alley at the beginning of a Law & Order episode. But oddly, I wasn't afraid of going in there. Something about Ranger screamed 'protector'.

The truck was massive. Ranger beeped it open, then watched as I scrambled into it, flopping around a bit. As he closed the door, I could have sworn I heard a slight chuckle.

Ranger

I had almost reached out to help Stephanie get into the truck, but froze, unsure if I should touch her or not. It was an unfamiliar feeling. Normally I wouldn't have given it much thought, but I didn't want to touch her without asking, and I didn't want to ask, lest she think I thought she was incapable of getting into the truck. So I just stood there as she struggled to get in, feeling like an idiot. As I closed the door I laughed at myself. '_Common, Manoso, stop acting like a scared school boy._'

We drove to Clarence Sampson's place. I explained more of the general rules and laws of bounty hunting, but also some of the secrets.

"Wear boots, preferably steel-toed. Once they open a door, slide your foot inside so they can't slam it shut."

"So they slam it shut a lot?"

Not for me. They tended to quake in fear at the sight of me. Her though? "It happens. And you don't want a door to break your foot. And remember, no matter how tough someone is, everyone has a weakness. 2/3rds of the time, it's their Mom. Convince her that her kid should come in, and that's half the bottle. Doesn't matter how tough a guy is, he's still afraid of his Mama."

That got me a look. "Are you scared of your mom?"

"Terrified. She's five-foot nothing and can wither me with a glance."

She giggled. "I'd like to see that. Can I meet her?"

A vision flashed in my head, taking Stephanie home to meet my family. Introducing her to all the nieces and nephews. It wasn't an unpleasant thought.

"Maybe someday. She lives in Newark."

I pulled into a parking space in front of the building. "Let's go. Watch me, I'll take the lead."

I knocked on Clarence's door, then stepped aside so Stephanie would be the one he would see when he looked through the peephole. I had a feeling she would have an easier time getting people to open their doors than I do.

There was no answer, so after a minute I knocked again. She started looking nervous.

"What if he isn't home?"

I actually didn't expect him to be. There hadn't been any lights on as we walked up. And it was only 7:30 at night, probably still happy hour. I decided to play professor again. "So, what do you know about him. Where will he be?"

She looked at the file she was clutching nervously. "A bar."

I nodded. "Probably. But we can't search every one in the city. Where should we start?"

She flipped through some more. "He's been arrested twice at the Painted Pony. So maybe we should try...no."

"No?"

"No. That's 2 miles away. He doesn't have a car listed in his assets, and his licence has been suspended. And 2 miles is a long way to walk, especially drunk."

I thought of a time I walked 23 miles in the jungle with Lester slung over my shoulder and a sprained ankle. Still, those were special circumstances. And not ones I'd pick for recreation.

"OK, so what bars are close by?"

"So here's the thing, I kind of hocked my smart phone a week ago to pay my electric bill."

I blinked at her. "You have a phone. I've texted you." Shit, she really was broke.

"Yeah, I had an old flip phone from 15 years ago. I figured if I didn't have electricity I couldn't exactly charge the iPhone anyway. And I put $10 worth of prepaid credits on this thing, so it isn't too expensive."

Fuck. I was tempted to just empty my wallet and give it all to her. $150 wasn't a lot to me, but for her it would be a fortune. But I figured she would be insulted. She needed a capture, some money she had earned. So I pulled out my own phone and an app. "There's 10 bars within a 3 block radius."

"What's the Painted Pony like?"

"I thought you said he wasn't likely to be there."

"Yeah, but he went that far out for a reason. Can you look it up? Why travel that much, especially if it wasn't special in some way?"

She might be new at this, but she was smart. Very smart. I found the place online. "Looks like their specialty is they play porn videos on TVs over the bar."

"Eww." She said. "So, he likes to look at naked women while he drinks." _As if most men didn't._ "Are any of the bars nearby strip clubs?"

I checked out the listings. "Yup. One."

She hiked her bag up her shoulder. "All right, let's go."

A strip club with Stephanie Plum. Well, this would be interesting.


	4. Chapter 4 Feeling like a Criminal

_Recap: Ranger and Stephanie attempt to capture a guy, but he isn't home. Stephanie uses logic to figure out which club nearby he is likely to be at, which happens to be a strip club._

Stephanie

I've only ever been in a strip club once. It was for my best friend Mary Lou's bachelorette party, and the strippers were all guys. This was….a little different.

This wasn't a classy place. There were a few scattered tables around a raised platform that looked like it was made of plywood and covered with oilcloth. The chairs were all of the metal folding variety. An ATM near the entrance had a $10 surcharge. The dim lighting emphasized the general grodiness of the place. Loud music blared from all directions, something with a hard, thumping beat. I tried to hold back a shudder.

Ranger leaned over to my ear, but had to almost shout to be heard. "You see that room in the corner?" I nodded. There were two men built like Mac trucks standing in front of a door that was painted the same color as the wall. "There's something going on there. The bouncers are guarding whatever is going on there, far more than they are looking at the dancers. Could be an illicit card game, could be drugs or guns."

I glanced in that direction again. Clarence Sampson sat only two tables away from the bouncers, his eyes locked on the woman gyrating around the pole. "There he is," I whisper shouted into Ranger's ear. "But he's really close to those bouncers."

Ranger

I hate places like this. Flashing light and loud music make it hard to adjust your senses to pick up threats. At least there wasn't a disco ball. Trying to avoid attracting attention, I led Stephanie to a table in one corner. It didn't have my back to the wall the way I prefered, but it was as close as we could get and still be able to see our target.

Stephanie looked around. "I'm the only woman here who isn't a stripper. Won't I stick out?"

"Sometimes couples come to these places. So it's not unheard of."

She nodded and scootched her chair closer to mine. She leaned her head on my shoulder and rubbed my bicep. Internally I froze. I could feel every inch or where she had touched me, like her hands were made of fire. She leaned over to my ear. "So, If I do this, we won't stick out as much?" I nodded. I wasn't really sure what else I could do. "If we try to grab Sampson where he is, will the bouncers stop us?"

I nodded. "They probably don't take too kindly to any kind of law enforcement here. Even with the proper paperwork."

"If we get him away from the bouncers, closer to the entrance, what about then?"

I looked at the layout. The bar was close to the entrance, and it was a straight shot out of the building and onto the street. Since the building was on a corner, we could get back around to my truck while out of sight.

"Could work. What are you thinking, wait until he comes to the bar for a refill?"

She shook her head. "I saw someone bring him a drink. He's not moving."

"Was it one of the dancers? They usually get the drinks at a discount. If they bring them to a customer who pays full price, they get to keep the difference."

She got an interesting look on her face. It reminded me of when she had been figuring out where Sampson was, like she was checking with some kind of internal sense. Her eyes traveled to something above my head. I turned to look. "Wednesday Amature Night!" the poster declared.

This was not how I had expected lessons to go. I figured we'd knock on a door, I'd growl a bit, and we'd get the guy into my truck, hopefully with dry pants. Sometimes they wet themselves and it was hell on the upholstery. Instead I was waiting outside the bathroom while Stephanie changed. She had assured me that what she was wearing underneath the jeans was suitable, and the DJ had agreed to let her have a go. So I waited, wondering when my life had gotten so off track.

Stephanie

I looked in the mirror with a critical eye, checking for any blemishes or rolls of fat. Looks like not having any money for food was an effective diet, I was flat as a pancake. Or my bank account. The DJ had given me the length of two songs to prepare, and I thanked God I had picked the good underwear for today. I wasn't sure exactly _why _I had gone with the fancy stuff, but when I had gotten dressed in the morning it had felt right.

The music changed. I had one song left, probably about 3 minutes. I took a deep breath. I couldn't believe I was doing this. "Relax," I told myself. "This is Stark Street, there is no one here that knows your mother." Adding one final layer of mascara for courage, I stepped out of the bathroom.

Ranger

I've spent my entire adult life learning to hide my emotions. But when Stephanie stepped out of that bathroom I think my jaw actually dropped open. She was wearing a matching red bra and pantie set, with lace ruffles all around the edges. It wasn't particularly revealing, nothing like the g-strings up on stage, but on her it was absolutely stunning.

"Babe…." was all I could get out, and even that was a breathy whisper.

She suddenly looked nervous and shy. "Is it OK? I don't have the right shoes. Maybe this is a bad idea…"

"You look perfect." I assured her. And she did. Absolutely stunning. I was glad for the looseness of my cargo pants, as I was starting to get a bit of an embarrassing situation in the Southern Hemisphere.

Her eyes held fear, but her face was determined. "Any tips to keep me from embarrassing myself?"

_I could use some myself._ "Don't try any acrobatics like you've seen on TV. Pole Dancing is a skill that takes time to get good at, just like any other. The guys aren't allowed to touch you, except to tuck money into your...clothes. If you get worried, blink at me three times in a row. But wink if you are doing OK. Understand?"

She nodded and handed me her bag, bulging with her clothes. "Wish me luck." she said as she turned towards the stage.

"_Buena suerte"_ I whispered as a thumping, growling piano tune came over the loudspeaker. Internally I smiled. Stephanie had a sense of humor. Fiona Apple's _Criminal_ was playing. The low, pulsing rhythm gave her a good beat to dance too, nothing super fast like most modern music. With each step she thrust out a hip, emphasizing her shape. I couldn't help but notice that she was slightly bony, she definitely wasn't eating enough. Maybe I would take her out to dinner tonight once we finished this capture, it wasn't that late.

As Stephanie reached the pole on the stage, she wrapped a hand high around it, turned her back to the metal, and slid down seductively. I tried to keep my eyes on the crowd, assessing threats, but I kept being drawn to her. She moved with the grace of someone who had studied dance as a child. Maybe ballet, or tap. Her hips moved constantly as she circled the pole, her hair whipping around. For a couple minutes the audience was enraptured with her. But then she reached down and grabbed one ankle, lifting it sideways up above her head. The crowd exploded in whoops and cheers as the bridge of the song crested. I changed my position, trying to move closer in case some idiot got any ideas. She glanced at me, winking to let me know she was OK.

I was rapt with attention at the grace of her, but also felt a pull of jealousy in my stomach. Guys were surrounding her, tucking bills into her bra and panties. And they had gotten a way better view than I had from my angle watching her. As the song ended she shimmied a bit, then sat down next to Clarence.

Stephanie

My adrenaline was pumping as I sat down in the folding chair, wiping the sweat away from my brow. I felt exhilarated, but more than that. I felt _alive_. I'd been scrimping and saving and trying to make it work for so long, that letting loose had been a welcome relief. And from the looks of it, I had about $30 stuffed into various straps, which would go a long way at the grocery store.

"Hey there, handsome." I said in my best sex kitten voice. Clarence looked around. "Who, me?" he said sloshilly. It was barely 7:45 and he was already three sheets to the wind.

"Yeah, you want to buy a girl a drink?" I asked, hoping to get him back near the bar.

"Well sure, pretty lady." He started to stand, but stumbled a bit. I moved under his arm to help guide him up. As I looked up I saw Ranger, ready to jump in if needed. I gave him a wink and half hoisted Clarence to the bar.

Ranger

She was doing remarkably well. I never would have guessed that a girl from the Burg would be so wanton onstage. When she hauled Clarence across the room to the bar I pulled the folder of paperwork carefully from her bag. I was ready to grab him if needed, but I wanted to see how she would handle herself. I could always step in if she ran into a problem. She made eye contact with me and then glanced at the door. I moved closer to it as she whispered into his ear. His eyes lit up, and he straightened a little. And then the two of them walked right out the exit, me following a few seconds later.


	5. Chapter 5 Success

_Recap: In order to get the FTA closer to the door, Stephanie pole dances at the strip club._

Ranger

"That was amazing! I can't believe we pulled it off!"

Stephanie was radiating joy. Her face was shining and her eyes bright. As soon as she had led him out the door and to the truck with a promise of alone time she'd cuffed him with a pair of bracelets I'd handed to her. It was actually the only thing I'd done for the capture, aside from helping to get him up into the cab of the truck.

"You did it on your own. I was just backup."

"There's no way I would have had the courage to do it if you hadn't been there though." She pulled her shirt from her bag and pulled it over her head. I was kind of sad to see her covering up. "So now we bring him to the police station?"

I nodded. "Do you want to grab something to eat after? My treat."

"That would be great. Cluck in a Bucket is right next to the police station. Maybe we could grab something and keep looking for Morelli."

I had been hoping to take her out on an actual date-like dinner, but she was too keyed up to be thinking that way. I'd try again later. I was nothing if not patient. I tried to remember if there was anything I would eat at Cluck in a Bucked besides a bottle of water. Maybe they would have some corn? That wouldn't be awful.

We drove to the police station with Stephanie still basking in her success. Clarence fell asleep, grumbling a bit. We had to drag him out of the truck, which took a bit of work, but in 10 minutes she had a body receipt worth $150 to her. At least I didn't have to worry about her eating this week.

As promised, I took her to the drive-in. She got a whole bucket of chicken. I got a salad that looked several days old, and had all the crispness of a potato chip left out for weeks in the South American jungle. And yes, I know exactly how crisp that isn't. Lester was terrible about both restocking our safehouse and cleaning up after himself.

"Can we go to Morelli's place and look around?" she asked, her fingers shiny with grease.

I looked at the clock. Still before 9. "Sure."

I got a key from the super. I didn't need it to unlock the door, but it's good to get permission, and I figured she might be more comfortable if our B&E involved no actual B. We didn't find a lot. No notes with directions scribbled on the desk. No signs that he had been here for several days. There was a desktop computer, with a setup that looked like it was for hard-core computer gaming. I turned it on, hoping to see his Google history. A picture of a canal in Venice popped up, along with a dialog box.

"There's a password. We'd need it to get in."

"Can't you, like, hack it or something?"

I typed a few keys, then shook my head. "His password isn't any of the most common. It's not qwerty, password, abc123, admin, or his family's names. Hacking isn't as easy as it looks on TV, and Morelli is smart enough to know not to use one of the super popular ones that anyone could guess. But I'll leave the computer on and copy down the router information. I have a guy." Hopefully Silvo would have better luck.

"There's nothing in the trash. Nothing at all, I guess he emptied it before he left."

"A trained cop will know what to look for at a crime scene. So they know how to cover their tracks. Still, good to be thorough."

Stephanie held up a key ring. "One thing he can't have cleared out, assuming he hasn't been here for a few days. I found his spare keys. Let's check his mailbox."

We trotted down to the lobby. All the boxes were labeled, except one. Makes sense a cop wouldn't advertise where he lived. Sure enough, the smallest key on the ring opened the box, and a jumble of letters fell out.

"Are we really allowed to do this?" Stephanie asked.

"Best not to ask."

She shuffled through the letters. "Nothing interesting. Just bills and junk mail. Oh, and it looks like his cousin is getting married in a few months."

I nodded. "Still, it was good thinking. Keep the keys in case you want to come back and have another look. No need to bother the super again."

She stared at the key ring. Specifically the key fob. I remembered the look of abject misery on her face as she had sat in the rusted heap of metal she had met me in. _Shit._

"I'm going to return the key to the super. Do you need a ride home?" She had two choices. Let me drive her back in my truck, or do what I knew she was thinking about.

"That's OK. I'll….walk."

"Sure Babe." Whatever she needed to tell herself.


	6. Chapter 6 Consequences

_Recap: After catching a skip, Stephanie and Ranger go to Morelli's house. Stephanie snags Joe's key. Ranger leaves, allowing her to take Joe's car._

Stephanie

I was going to hell.

How many sins had I committed today? I'd taken drugs, even if accidentally, laid about the house when I was supposed to be working, done a dance at a strip club, and was now getting ready to steal a car.

And there was the lust. Oh, the lust. When I was dancing I could feel Ranger's eyes on me. And it wasn't creepy, it was exciting. I wondered what all those muscles under his t-shirt would feel like.

Focus. Car thieving to do.

The fob unlocked the door of a red Jeep. I hopped in, basking in the comfortable seat. The key slid in easily, and it started on the first try with a small purr. It was such a change from what I had been driving that I nearly cried. Surely it couldn't be that wrong to take it. He was FTA, right? So I could commandeer his vehicle to help catch him. That wasn't so bad, was it?

Fuck it. I needed a car, one that operated. I couldn't catch criminals in a car that wouldn't start. My captures would laugh at me. I wasn't proud, but I put on my seatbelt and pulled out of the parking lot into traffic.

I didn't want to drive through the Burg and risk someone seeing me in Joe's car and calling my mother. That would be a disaster and a half. So I skirted around the neighborhood. Unfortunately I had gotten so used to having a GPS that now I was helpless without one, and within a few minutes I was lost.

"Ok Stephanie, think." I told myself, hoping to keep myself company. "You've lived in this city your whole life. So how do you get home?"

I tried to navigate via the moon, then realized I had no idea what direction the moon was at this time of night. At a stop sign I reached back and dug around in the pocket behind the seat, hoping to find a city map. A cop would have one of those, right? It took a moment, but finally I found what I was looking for. A slamming door grabbed my attention, and I looked up to see Joe Morelli across an intersection, storming away from a van covered in antennas. Right towards me.

"What the hell are you doing with my car?" I heard him yell as I went into panic mode.

"Shit, shit, shitshit" I mumbled to myself as I slammed on the gas, careening into the intersection. Probably remembering the last time I had pointed a car at him, and the subsequent broken leg, he dove to the side, and I sped off into the darkness.

* * *

I was still berating myself when I finally found Hamilton. Yet again I had been only a few feet away from him, and again I had let him slip through my fingers. I pulled over to think about my next step. He knew I had his car, and he knew who I was. With my name he could easily look up my address. So my options were to ditch the car, park it somewhere he couldn't find it, or use it as bait. I was pretty sure I could find a bar parking lot where it wouldn't get towed if I parked it overnight, but it seemed a waste to not use this opportunity to catch him.

I was in over my head. I needed advice. So I pulled out my cell phone and called Ranger, a little embarrassed that I had been away from him for only half an hour and needed him again.

A mechanical voice read out his number and said it was unavailable, and to leave a message. It hadn't rung at all, so he hadn't sent me to voicemail. Either his phone was dead or he was out of range. I hatched a vague plan in my head. Park the car in my lot in view of the bushes near the entrance of the building. Disable it by removing the distributor cap. Wait until he came to collect it, then pounce.

I sighed. It was an OK plan in theory, but it would work far better with Ranger helping. And there were flecks of snow dancing in the cold air. I wouldn't be able to stay outside more than 10 minutes before I'd get miserable. Perhaps I could do it tomorrow. I pulled back into the traffic lane, and headed to a bar close enough to my apartment that I could walk home, even in the frigid air.

Ranger

Lester had been annoyed that I was so late to inspect the latest addition to the Rangeman building. "You have been totally off your game lately. But wait until you see this." He led me down the stairs of the building that was still being constructed. Everything below ground was concrete, the first basement being the parking garage, and the holding cells below that.

A few feet past the stairway was a heavy door. It looked like it was nothing more than thick wood, but we had designed them to be impenetrable to either anyone trying to get in, or out. They were soundproof and could withstand a small explosion. If we had to hold people, nasty people, before turning them over, we would be prepared.

"We have 3 cells like this set up, the other 3 that will be saferooms are almost done, but the furniture still has to be assembled."

I nodded. "It really is all coming together. All those nights up late on watch, planning, dreaming. And now we're just a few months away."

Lester nodded. "Sure is cuz. Want to help assemble furniture? The IKEA shipment came today."

We spent the next hour and a half assembling 3 identical double beds. With the internet not set up yet, and no reception this far underground, we had nothing to go on but the wordless instructions. This led to a lot of confusion, swearing, and almost as much disassembling as assembling. The second and third were much easier, once we had gotten the hang of it.

Finally we were done. I stood up and brushed the dust off my pants, a long-standing habit from boot camp. When we got back up to the ground floor my phone buzzed. And buzzed, and buzzed. I looked at it. 10 missed calls. 3 messages. 5 texts. As I went to check the text messages it rang again.

"Yo"

"Ranger!"

Stephanie sounded like she was about to cry. "What's wrong?" I asked. Lester turned to look at me, and I held up a finger for him to wait.

"It's a long story. Short answer is, Morelli broke into my apartment and handcuffed me to my shower bar. Can you please come here and let me out?"

"I'm on my way. Are you hurt?"

"No, just upset and embarrassed. And besides, I'm naked."

"I'll be right there."

Lester looked amused. "Do you need help? Sounds like you could use backup."

"Shove it Santos."


	7. Chapter 7 Trapped

_Recap: Stephanie sees Joe as she drives away in his car. She considers using the car as bait, but can't get ahold of Ranger. Ranger is in the basement of the still being built Rangeman building, and misses her call. He comes upstairs to a call from Stephanie asking him to rescue her from the shower she's handcuffed to._

Stephanie

I don't think I've ever been more embarrassed in my life.

I had hoped parking the car a couple blocks away would delay Joe finding it. I had been unable to reach Ranger, and decided it would be much wiser to wait until I had him as backup. So I'd parked, removed the distributor cap, and hustled home, wincing in the now freezing rain. And then I'd slipped on the stairs to my apartment building, dropping the damn thing behind the bushes I had planned on hiding behind if I had gone through with my plan. Deciding that fate obviously meant it to be there, I'd given up on finding it and trudged up to my apartment.

To try and save money on heating, weeks ago I'd set the thermostat to 58, so the only real way to warm up had been by taking a hot shower. The warm water had been a balm to my frazzled soul, and I had finally warmed up and was starting to relax when my shower curtain was ripped open. And there stood Morelli, his eyes livid and his nostrils flared.

"Where is it?" he said in a tone that was filled with menace.

"Where's what? And what the fuck are you doing in my shower? How did you get in here?" I yelled at him, trying to cover myself with the torn remains of the curtain.

"Where is the distributor cap? I found the car. Did you think I didn't have a fob to set off the alarm? Took me less than 15 minutes. And the window, your fire escape is damn slippery in this weather."

Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. "I don't have it." Which was sort of the truth.

"Fine." He grabbed my wrist and roughly handcuffed me to the shower bar. As I tried to free myself he grabbed my purse, dumping the contents onto the floor. Finding no cap he stormed out of the bathroom, and I heard him methodically tear my place apart. For once I was grateful that I had so little stuff, there wasn't that much to search. After what felt like hours, but was probably more like 20 minutes, he stormed back in.

"One last chance, where the hell is it?"

"I don't have it." I growled, with all the indignation of someone who was technically telling the truth.

"Fine. Stay there then."

"You're going to leave me here? Just let me starve to death?"

He stared at me. Stared at me in the same way he had when I was 16 at the Tasty Pastry. But I wasn't 16 anymore. I was an adult, he had invaded my home, and I was pissed.

"Shit." He dug in the detritus of my purse and pulled out my cellphone. He held it just out of reach, and I couldn't move because the handcuff was jammed closed in a decorative end of the shower bar, keeping me in place. "Stop following me, stop looking for me. You can't catch me. I can't clear my name if I'm stuck in jail, so stop making it harder for me to do that."

He put the phone on top of the toilet tank, just out of reach. "Find another line of work. You aren't cut out for this."

And then he left, out the front door.

I fumed for a moment, then set myself on the task of reaching the phone. It was a few inches beyond my grasp, so I grabbed a shampoo bottle and carefully, oh so carefully edged the phone closer to me, praying all the way it wouldn't fall off the tank onto the floor.

There was really only one choice about who to call. No way I'd let my dad see me naked. Same with cousin Vinnie. My best friend had kids and turned her phone off at night. I needed the respect of the police if I was going to be a bounty hunter, and didn't want to be gossip around the station for the next month. So of course I called Ranger.

It was a brilliant plan. Except that he still wasn't picking up. I texted him to call me as soon as he got the message. Then that it was an emergency. I called again. Left a message. Soon I was frantic. Morelli had left out the front door, and entered through the window. He hadn't fully closed either, and the cold air was filling the apartment as the crossbreeze circulated it. I was still wet from my shower, and my damp hair clung to my skin. I couldn't reach the taps to turn on hot water to add some heat to the room, so I just got colder.

So I called, and called, and called, desperate for him to pick up. I was about to give up and call 911 when he answered.

"Yo"

"Ranger!" I felt such a wave of relief my legs got wobbly.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

I didn't want to go into it. I just wanted it over with. "It's a long story. Short answer is, Morelli broke into my apartment and handcuffed me to my shower bar. Can you please come here and let me out?"

"I'm on my way. Are you hurt?"

Not exactly. Cold more than anything. "No, just upset and embarrassed. And besides, I'm naked."

"I'll be right there."

He hung up without saying goodbye, which struck me as rude, but I wasn't in a position to be picky. But the room was getting cold fast. I tried to cover myself with the curtain, the clammy plastic providing a modicum of protection against the air, but my mind was starting to get a little woozy. I wasn't running on adrenaline anymore, and there wasn't anything to do but wait for Ranger to get there. I hoped he wasn't too far away.


	8. Chapter 8 Hot and Cold

_Recap_: _Stephanie recounts Morelli breaking into her apartment and chaining her to the shower rod, looking for the distributor cap to his car. But when he leaves, both the door and window are open, exposing her to the cold winter air. It takes her a while to get ahold of him, and she is getting cold._

_Sometimes a chapter just doesn't want to be written. This one took me forever, even though I knew exactly where it was going. Still, I hope you enjoy it, and think it was worth the wait._

Ranger

It should have taken me 10 minutes to get to Stephanie's apartment, but the icy rain made the streets treacherous. Learning to drive in Miami had not prepared me for winter driving. So it was 15 minutes later that I pulled into her parking lot, cursing at how slowly I'd had to move. I wanted to sprint into the building, but I'd be no good rescuing her if I ended up sprawled on the pavement with a broken leg. Still, as a bit of motion caught my eye I picked up the pace. It was a flapping curtain from a window open on the 3rd floor.

Once inside I rushed up, taking the stairs 3 at a time. One of the apartments had a door cracked. "Stephanie?" I called, not wanting to barge into a strangers house at 10 o'clock at night, but also desperate to find her.

"In here." I heard softy. I moved in and closed the door. The apartment was cold, maybe 45 degrees. My heart sank when I entered the small bathroom. Stephanie's lips were turning blue and she was shivering.

I swore in Spanish, pulled a handcuff key from my pocket, and undid the cuff, gently inspecting the wrist for damage.

"Thank you. Thanks for coming. I know it's late."

"Don't worry about it. Are you ok?"

She nodded, then started shivering, her teeth chattering so hard I was worries she'd crack a tooth. If I found Morelli, I might just kill him. I try not to kill. Not anymore. But if I had been half an hour later..

No time to think about that. Focus on the mission. "We need to warm you up. I'm going to turn on the water. Not hot, just a little warmer than body temperature." She nodded as she rubbed her hands against her arms, which were covered in goose bumps.

I turned on the tap, getting the water to slightly above skin temperature. She gasped when it touched her skin. "It's that icy burn you get when the water is super hot."

I didn't want to turn it down anymore. The more heat she had, the better. "I promise it's not actually hot, your nerves are just confused. Can you stand it?" She nodded. "I'm going to get the window closed and turn up the heat."

"I can't afford to have the heat on high."

_Fuck._ "Send me the bill. I'm chilly as well." Before she could object I went into her bedroom, closing the window and shutting the curtain. Then I bumped the thermostat up to 80. I couldn't get her warm if the entire apartment was just above freezing. I turned on the oven for good measure, and left the door cracked.

When I returned to the bathroom Stephanie had curled herself into a ball on the floor of the bathtub, her arms wrapped around her legs and her chin resting on her knees. She looked forlorn and miserable. And I finally registered that she was naked. It wasn't that I hadn't known that when I walked in, it was just that I'd been so focused on getting her safe that I hadn't devoted any mental energy to it.

"Are you feeling better?"

In response her shivering increased. Slowly at first, then full-body quakes. "Fffffuck, what's wrong with me? I fffffeel warmer than I did before."

"Coming out of Hypothermia. The shivering is good, it means your body is warming up. Do you want me to leave or help?"

Her arm reached out, grabbing mine. "Please don't leave." There was a touch of panic in her eyes.

"OK, I'll stay." I grabbed a paper cup off her counter and poured the water over her back. She drew in a breath at the warmth of it, then relaxed.

"Hmmmm. Keep doing that please."

As the tub filled I kept lifting the water and pouring it over her back. She cupped the water in her hands and splashed it onto her chest. I tried to keep my eyes away, I swear I did. This wasn't seduction, it was first aid.

And then the tub finished filling she leaned back and swished her hair in the water, I assume trying to work out the residue of the shampoo bubbles I could see stuck in her hair. It left me with a view of her breasts, her back arched to get her head deeper in the water, making them stick out. I turned my head, but not before I caught a glimpse of soft brown curls at the cleft of her legs. After a moment I felt her hand on my arm again, and when I looked at her I could see the question in her eyes. And then she kissed me.

Stephanie

I had never been so cold in my life. Not even that camping trip when I was 9 and I had gotten wet right before going to sleep. And then he was there. And I felt safe, and then warm. And I realised I wanted him. I leaned my head back, exposing myself actually seemed easier than saying anything. But the look in his eye was of someone trying not to look at something he really, really wanted to see.

I don't know what made me do it. Maybe the letdown of adrenalin, maybe the way I felt cared for. Maybe it was just that I hadn't had sex since the day I found my rat of an ex-husband with Joyce. But I kissed him. Tentative at first, then harder as he responded to me. My wet arm wrapped around his neck and I clutched at him, pulling his tongue into my mouth. His hand moved my hair back over my shoulder. It was stiff with the dried shampoo gunk that was left in it. He pulled back and looked at me.

"Can you stand enough to shower? I want to get the warm water all over you, and the tub isn't big enough."

I tried to stand, but my knees wobbled. I reached out to him for support, and got his sleeves wet in the process. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

"It's fine, it's fine." he replied.

"Maybe…" I hesitated. Good Burg girls didn't do this sort of thing. "Maybe you could join me in the shower?"

In an instant his shirt was off, revealing a sculpted chest with a light dusting of hair. I tugged on his belt as he kicked off his shoes, loosening it then pushing down the waist of his cargo pants. I heard the thud that told me one of the pockets held something heavy and metallic. And then he was in the shower with me.

He pulled the remains of the curtain closed. It was torn but still mostly functional. Then he turned on the sprayer. The water felt both scalding and cold, even though I could see on the temperature knob that it was only a little above lukewarm.

Ranger took the shower head and gently ran it over my hair, back, and stomach. As I warmed up the water stopped it's weird scalding/freezing sensation, and started to actually feel good. I nudged the temperature up to where I normally had it, then even hotter. I turned to him, taking his face in my hands and kissing him again. He put the shower massager back in it's holster and let the water fall over both of us as his arms wrapped around me. My hands trailed down his back, heavily corded with muscle. His tongue explored my mouth as my fingers slipped under the boxers he was still wearing to feel his amazing ass.

I broke away from the kiss, panting.

"Do you want to stop?" he asked. Obviously he didn't want to. His erection was straining against the wet fabric.

"No." I replied. I really didn't want to. "But I'm not on the pill right now and.."

He grinned, bent down, and dug in one of the pockets of his cargo pants, producing a 3-pack of condoms. "Remind me to thank my cousin."

I'd send him a fruit basket. Well, I couldn't afford a fruit basket. I might be able to send him a banana. Speaking of bananas, either Ranger was happy to see me, or he was carrying one in his boxer pockets. Did boxers have pockets? I turned off the water and stroked Ranger, feeling his length. Definitely not fruit. _Focus Stephanie._ "Let's take this to the bedroom."

Ranger's speed was impressive. One moment I was in the shower, the next wrapped in a threadbare towel and he was carrying me effortlessly to my bed. The air was warm, almost hot. My skin was too, thanks to all the steamy water I had been standing under. And then I was laid out on the bed, under the covers. And he was kissing me. First my mouth, then sucking on my neck. Then a trail of kisses down my abdomen and _oh my god!_

I moaned as his nose nuzzled against my clit, then nearly screamed as he sucked it between his teeth, sending sensations I'd never felt before running like lightning through my veins. He held a finger against my pussy as I shifted my hips, trying to drive him into me. "More" I managed to get out. Despite the danger I had been in earlier, or perhaps because of it, I felt _alive_. More alive than I had in months. One finger slipped into me as I shifted. It felt incredible, and I groaned, almost in awe of what he was doing to me, to my body. He added more fingers, and I rode him as he sucked and licked me. His left hand had reached up and was pinching my nipple. My nerves were on overdrive, and he somehow seemed to be everywhere at once. Caressing my breasts, my stomach, my ass. All the while his tongue was working and his fingers pumping into me. I felt the telltale build-up of an orgasm, but when it hit, it was like nothing I'd ever felt before. Previously my orgasms had been a little crest, like going over a hill. A few seconds of pleasant feelings, then a few minutes of relaxation. This...this was different. Every muscle in my body tensed up so hard I arched up, then released simultaneously. I let out a cry, then gasped as I struggled to get in more oxygen as the waves of sensation knocked me nearly senseless. The entire world shrunk down to that bed. I could still feel Ranger's fingers inside me as I squirmed.

He pushed himself up to my face, capturing it in a blistering kiss. Then his lips traveled to my ear. He murmured something in Spanish that I didn't understand. "Mmmm?" I mumbled, only barely conscious in the aftershocks of what was undoubtedly the best orgasm of my life.

"I said, do you want me to fuck you?" he said in a low, throaty voice.

I nodded, barely able to form words. "Use protection." His body lifted slightly, there was a small tearing sound, and then he was inside me, thrusting deep. I could feel it everywhere, not just in my pussy, but throughout my body. I wrapped my legs around his waist, driving him further in. His mouth trailed to my neck, sucking hard enough I thought I might have a hickey the next day. All I wanted in the world was for him to be inside me. Somehow he slipped a finger in between us and started to rub my clit again. I wrapped my legs tighter, and added my arms around his back. His skin was still wet from the shower, aiding as I rocked into him. In only a few moments I was tensing up again, my body still primed from the last orgasm. I screamed out as the tension released, followed a moment after by a grunt, and his weight collapsing onto me. We both shuddered for a moment, and he whispered in my ear "Babe."


End file.
